Contact device.



" "oiarrED STATES,

PATENT ornion.

l ANDREW PLEOHER, OF LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, ASSIGNOR TO THE PACIFIC WIRELESS TELEGRAPH COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF WASHINGTON.

CONTACT DEVICE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented April 10, 1906.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ANDREW PLECHER, a-

citizen of the United States, residing at Los Angeles, in the county of Los Angeles and State of California, have invented new and useful Improvements in Contact Devices, of which the followin is a specification.

My invention re ates primarily to coherers for receiving telegraph messa es by the system denominated wireless telegraphyf but it may also be used to increase the sensitiveness of any microphone receiver or transmitter; and the object t ereof is to provide a contact of an exceeding ysensitive nature wherebyfaint Hertzian or other electrical waves will produce a distinctly audible sound in the telephone of the receiving apparatus.

In the drawings forming a part of this application I have illustrated my device applied to wireless-telegraph receiving-station.

Figure 1 is a longitudinal vertical section of the contact device on the line 1 1 of Fig. 2 looking in the direction of the arrow, and a diagrammatic representation of the other parts of the receiving apparatus. Fig. 2 is a cross-section of the contact device on the line 2 2 of Fig. 1 looking in the direction of the arrow.

In the drawings, 3 is the aerial conductor or mast Wire, which is connected through the contact device 4 to the ground 5 or other capacity. A telephone 6 is connected in shunt in the aerial line. The contact device 'consists of a body 7, which is referably cylindrical in shape and is formed of quartz-glass, and the ends are closed by pieces of ordinary glass preferably semiglobular in shape. Projecting through the upper end 8 is a platinum wire 9, to which connection is made by the aerial line. To the inner end of this platinum wire is secured a silver wire 10, which loosely contacts with a silver plate 11, which late rests upon and is supported by an iron block 12. Plate 11 and block 12 are supported .by an iron base-block 13, which is of the same shape in cross-section as the body and fits loosely and is vertically movable therein. This base block is connected to, and supported by a spiral spring 14, which is connected to the platinum wire 15, that extends through the bottom 16. This platinum wire is connected to ound by wire 17. Straddlin the bod on a e Withthe baseplate is the horses oe-magnet 18', which issupported by the micrometer-screw 19, revolubly mounted in base 20. Around the lower end of this screw is a groove 21, which receives the end of screw 22, which .screw holds the micrometer-screw in lace and permits it to be revolved. A millied operatinghead 23 is affixed to the top of the micrometer-screw to rotate the same. Plate 11 is preferably covered on its u per surface with a sulfid coating or oxidize film, and an envelop of sulfur 23 may be secured around the silver wire to keep the coating of plate 11 renewed as the same is used, as herein. after stated. This plate may be used Without being oxidized or covered with a sulfid coating, under some conditions; but under most'conditions the sulfid coating or the oxidized surface produces the best results. After the internal parts are in place within the body of the device with the silver wire and silver plate in light contact, the air is exhausted from the interior thereof and the same is then sealed. It is desirable that the air be exhausted to the one-millionth ofan atmosphere to produce the best results It will be observed that the contact between the silver plate 11 and the wire 10 may be adjusted to any degree of tension by moving the magnet 18 up or down by means of the micrometer-screw 19, which carries with it the base -block 13 through the magnetic influence exerted thereon by the magnet. Whenever it is desirable to change the point of contact between the silver wire and plate, another ma net, more powerful than magnet 18, may be eld 0n the outside of the body to draw block 13 and plate 11 along upon the to of the base-block, thereby making the ll 6 of the contact device practically continuous, as the sulfur envelo will resulfurize those parts of plate 11 hic have been in contact with wire 10 after such point is re moved from contact. In order to make the contact between wire 10 and plate 11 more sensitive, I have provided a prism 24, so arranged that it will project the ultraviolet rays upon the point of contact between the wire and the plate. In order to produce such rays, I provide an acetylene-gas burner back of the prisms. This gas-flame may be rendered sensitive in any desired manner, as it produces a better result if rendered sensitive than if permitted to burn steadily. It will be understood that spring 14 is a very sensitive spring and of sufficient power to simply su port the parts restin thereon to main tain t e contact between t e silver plate and the silverrod.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new, anddesire to secure by Letters Patent, is v 1. In a system of wireless telegraphy an aerial line; a contact device comprising a tubular bod of quartz-glasshaving its ends suitably c osed and the air exhausted therefrom; a silver rod in said tubular body electrically connected to the aerial line; a silver plate in said tubular bodyhaving anoxidized or sulfurized surface in contact with said rod; an iron base-plate supporting said late; a spring supporting" said base-plate; e ectrical connections connecting said spring to ground and a magnet exterior said glass body.

2. In a system of wireless telegraphy an aerial line; a contact device comprising a quartz-glass tubular body having its ends suitably closed and the air exhausted there from; a silver rod in said tubular body electrically connected to the aerial line; a silver plate in said tubular body having an oxidized or sulfurized surface in contact with said rod; an iron block below andiorming the support of said silver plate; an iron base-block below and supporting said first iron block, said first iron block being smaller than the baseblocl: and movable thereon; a spring support .ing said base-block; electrical connections connecting said spring to ground; a magnet adjacent to said tubular body and adapted to control by its magnetic influence the position ofthe contact-plate in said tubular body; and means to move said magnet.

3. in a system of wireless telegraphy an aerial line; a contact device comprising a quartz-glass tubular body having its ends suitably closed and the air exhausted therefrom; a silver rod in said tubular body .electrically connected to the aerial line; a silver plate in said tubular body having an oxidized or sulfurized surface in contact with said rod; an electrical connectionconnecting said plate to ground; and means to direct ultraviolet rays upon the point of engagement between said rod and said plate.

4. In a system of wireless telegraphy an aerial line; a contact device comprising a eraser quartzglass tubular body having its 'nds suitably closed and the air exhausted therefrom; a silver'rod in said tubular body'electrically connected to the aerial line; a silver plate in said tubular body having an oxidized or sulfurized surface in contact with said rod;

a sulfur envelop; an iron block below and forming the support of said silver plate; an iron base-bloc below and su porting said first base-block, said first block eing smaller than the base-block and movable thereon, a spring supporting said base-block; electrical connections connecting said spring to ground; a magnet exterior and adjacent to said tubular body and adapted to control by its magnetic influence the position of the contactplate in said tubular body; means'to move said magnet; and means to direct ultraviolet rays upon the point of engagement between said rod and said contact-plate; and a telephone connected in said aerial line in shunt on opposite sides of said contact device.

5. Means to intensify sound in a tele hone comprising a contact dew'oe connected in the telephone-circuit, said contact device comprising a hollow glass body having a portion of its walls composed of quartz-glass and hav ing the air exhausted from the interior thereof; a silver rod in said body electrically connected to the line leading into said telephone; a silver plate in said body having an oxidized or sulfurized surface in contact with said rod; electrical connections connecting said late to the telephone-ground and means to irect ultraviolet rays upon the point of engagement between said rod and said plate.

6. in an electrical circuit, a contact device ANDREW me n.

I Witnesses:

G. E. HARPHAM, HENRY T. HAZARD. 

